Author: Jidarian Alex

AZERBAIJAN TO SHUT DOWN TURKISH-FUNDED MOSQUE, FACING MORE CLOSURES

Anadolu Agency
May 21 2009
Turkey

Azerbaijan is continuing to shut down mosques in a practice Muslims
had suffered in Soviet era.

Azerbaijan is continuing to shut down mosques in a practice Muslims
had suffered in Soviet era. Muslims in Baku will gather to perform
Friday prayer at the mosque that is to be closed.

After the closure of Sehitlik and Diyanet Mosques, now Baku State
University Divinity School Mosque will be closed. Azeris fear other
27 mosques that have survived during the Soviet period will face the
same end.

Hidayet Orucov, who is responsible for Religious Institutions in
Azerbaijan, claimed 27 mosques out of 32 are "illegal" in Old Baku,
and implied these mosques were going to be closed.

Hovewer, Azerbaijani Muslims insist performing Friday prayer in this
mosque despite the ban. Earlier, two mosques that most people gather
for Friday prayer in Baku already closed. According to local sources,
at least ten thousand people come to the school mosque and most of
them are students.

Students once closed one of the central streets and performed afternoon
prayers in the middle of the road when azan (call to prayer) had been
banned in the country.

Faculty and Mosque began their activities in 1992. Both faculty and
the mosque’s costs are covered by the Turkish Religious Foundation.

However, since the faculty opened, problems have never been
finished. The faculty can accept "only 50 students per year". Although
It is the only Divinity School in the country, the faculty still can
not have permission to open postgraduate, doctoral programs after
17 years.

Azerbaijan had destroyed a mosque that named after Prophet Muhammed
(PBUH) as well as another one in Petrol island, and shut down Sehitlik
Mosque, which was built by Turkish Directorate of Religious Affairs.

A mosque was built on 28 June, 1995 beside the Martyrdom cemetery
erected in Baku in honour of 1130 Turkish soldiers died fighting
withing "Caucasian Islam Army" against Armenian and Russian soldiers
that occupied Azerbaijan in 1918.

RA PRIME MINISTER TIGRAN SARGSYAN’S CONDOLENCES ON THE DEMISE OF AIDIN MORIKYAN

Wed nesday, 20 May 2009

RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan’s Condolences on the Demise of
Aidin Morikyan With a feeling of deep sorrow, I learnt of the untimely
demise of renowned journalist and editor Aidin Morikyan.

His name is closely related with the Artsakhian movement, the
restoration and development of independent Armenian statehood.

He was among those intellectuals who did not hesitate to stand by
the people and spared no efforts and energy to make their dreams
come true. Aidin Morikyan founded and headed the editorial staff of
Hayastani Hanrapetutyun daily, collaborated with other media promoting
the emergence of independent media in our country.

In connection with the passing of Aidin Morikyan, I express deep
condolences to his family, close relatives and the journalistic
community.

AZERBAIJAN TO SHUT DOWN TURKISH-FUNDED MOSQUE, FACING MORE CLOSURES

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
21.05.2009 20:27 GMT+04:00

Azerbaijan to shut down Turkish-funded mosque, facing more
closures. Azerbaijan is continuing to shut down mosques in a practice
Muslims had suffered in Soviet era. Muslims in Baku will gather to
perform Friday prayer at the mosque that is to be closed. After the
closure of Sehitlik and Diyanet Mosques, now Baku State University
Divinity School Mosque will be closed. Azeris fear other 27 mosques
that have survived during the Soviet period will face the same end.

Hidayet Orucov, who is responsible for Religious Institutions in
Azerbaijan, claimed 27 mosques out of 32 are "illegal" in Old Baku,
and implied these mosques were going to be closed. Faculty and Mosque
began their activities in 1992. Both faculty and the mosque’s costs are
covered by the Turkish Religious Foundation. Azerbaijan had destroyed
a mosque that named after Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) as well as another
one in Petrol island, and shut down Sehitlik Mosque, which was built
by Turkish Directorate of Religious Affairs.

A mosque was built on 28 June, 1995 beside the Martyrdom cemetery
erected in Baku in honour of 1130 Turkish soldiers died fighting
withing "Caucasian Islam Army" against Armenian and Russian soldiers
that occupied Azerbaijan in 1918, World Bulletin reported.

REPORT: SWITZERLAND INFORMS BAKU OF TURKEY-ARMENIA TALKS

Today’s Zaman
May 20 2009
Turkey

Switzerland’s state secretary of foreign affairs, Michael Ambuhl,
had talks with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov on
Monday in Baku and informed Mammadyarov of the ongoing negotiations of
normalization between Armenia and Turkey that have been held through
his country’s mediation.

During the meeting Ambuhl noted that the main goal of his visit to
Azerbaijan was to conduct political consultations between the two
countries, the Azeri Press Agency (APA) reported on its English Web
page, citing sources from the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry press
service.

Ambuhl also apprised Mammadyarov of the negotiation process between
Turkey and Armenia under his country’s mediation.

"The latest developments showed that it was impossible to achieve
progress in the maintenance of stability and security in the region
without taking Azerbaijan’s position into consideration and without
a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," Mammadyarov was quoted
as saying during the meeting by the APA.

JHANGIRYAN’S VERDICT REMAINS UNCHANGED
Lusine Vasilyan

"Radiolur"
20.05.2009 14:36

The Court of Appeal today returned the verdict on former Deputy
Prosecutor General Gagik Jhangiryan. Jhangiryan’s lawyers had applied
to the Court of Appeal, demanding to reverse the verdict of the Court
of First Instance dated March 23.

Presided by Judge Arshak Khachatryan, the Court of Appeal took the
decision to leave unchanged the verdict of the General Court of Kentron
and Nork Marash communities, which sentenced Gagik Jhangiryan to three
years of imprisonment under Article 306 of the Armenian Criminal Code.

Neither the advocates not the prosecutor were present in the courtroom
today.

ARMROSGAZPROM DISCUSSED FINANCIAL-ECONOMIC PROGRAM FOR 2009

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
19.05.2009 23:01 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On May 18-19, ArmRosgazprom CJSC’s Directors and
Managers organized their board sessions in Yerevan.

During the session, the company’s 2008 annual report and balance
sheet were reviewed. Directors and managers also discussed a number of
other projects, including gas complex reconstruction and development
programs and gas-energy projects envisaged for the current year.

Directors touched upon other issues concerning company ‘s current
activities and adopted relevant decisions. They also approved the
agenda for shareholders’ annual general meeting.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE CHAIRMAN OF THE RA NA STANDING COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, EDUCATION, CULTURE, YOUTH AND SPORT ARTAK DAVTYAN

National Assembly of RA
May 19 2009
Armenia

He was born on October 30, 1966 in Kajaran.

1983-1984 he worked as a trainer at Abovian youth sports
school. 1984-1986 he served in the Soviet Army. In 1990 graduated
from the Faculty of Planning Economy of Yerevan State Institute of
National Economy. He received degree of an economist.

1990-1992 and 1994-1997 he worked as an economist, later manager at
Abovian branch of Agroardbank. 1992-1994 and 1997-1998 he worked as
an executive director of trade enterprise in Moscow, capital of the
Russian Federation.

In 1998 he worked Deputy Director at RA Railway Transport State CJSC
of the Armenian Railway system of RA Ministry of Transport. From
1999 he has been Director, later Deputy Director General at Armenian
Railway CJSC.

2003-2004 – Deputy Minister of Energy of the Republic of Armenia.

2004-2007 he worked Director at AC-Fin Royal LLC.

>From 2006 he has given lectures at Yerevan State University of
Economics.

On May 12, 2007 he was elected a deputy of the National Assembly by
the proportional electoral system from the Republican Party of Armenia.

He is a member of the board of the Republican Party of Armenia.

On May 18, 2009 he was elected Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee
on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport,

He is married, and he has three daughters.

ICON ANNOUNCES INTRODUCTION OF NEW ENTRY TARIFF PLAN

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
18.05.2009 14:16 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Today iCON Communications announced the introduction
of its new iCON entry service plan. According to Adam Kablanian,
Chief Executive Officer of iCON Communications, tariff is intended
for those customers who yet use dial-up connection.

The service provides up to 128 kilobits per second (kbps) download and
64 kbps upload on its WiMAX network. As with all iCON service plans,
there are no traffic limits or usage charges for this plan. The new
plan, priced at 8000 drams per month (VAT included), is aimed at
providing fast, reliable and much more affordable Internet service
to a wider portion of Internet users, many of whom are connecting
via slower dial-up connections today.

iCON is also introducing several higher speed service offerings
specifically for the corporate clients. These include 2, 3 and 4 Mb/s
shared plans, as well as dedicated service ranging from 512 kbps to
4 Mbps.

As iCON has also announced, new customers can utilize the company’s USB
Stick Modems (previously available only for purchase) by simply paying
a 15000 dram deposit which is refundable at the end of service. As
a result, customers can experience fast, reliable and affordable
Internet service on their laptops and desktops anywhere in iCON’s
coverage area, without significant upfront fees.

"We are extremely excited to add these new service offerings to the
suite of plans we provide to our customers. iCON’s mission is to
provide Fast, Reliable and Affordable Internet to as many Armenians
as possible, and this is another important step toward achieving this
mission," stated Adam Kablanian.

ERDOGAN SAYS GARABAGH TOPPED OBAMAS TURKISH VISIT AGENDA

AssA-Irada
May 13 2009
Azerbaijan

The key topic in US President Barack Obamas visit to Turkey in
early April was the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Upper (Nagorno)
Garabagh, not US-Turkish relations, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan said in the Milli Mejlis (Azeri parliament) on Wednesday. He
said both he himself and President Abdullah Gul had outlined their
position and said they were expecting US support in the issue. This
put the Garabagh issue on Washingtons near-future diplomatic agenda.

After returning to the US, President Obama telephoned Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev, while US Vice President Jo Biden called
Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian several times. In the meantime,
the US State Department adviser on Caucasus affairs, Mathew Bryza,
has paid three visits to the region. In May, US Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton has invited Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign
ministers to Washington and urged them to step up their diplomatic
effort to resolve the long-standing dispute. Erdogan said further
that international attention to the Garabagh problem is increasing as
well, adding that all regional states are aware that normal relations
could not be fostered in the region as long as the conflict remains
unresolved. According to the prime minister, Garabagh settlement is not
only in the interests of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Armenia. The transport
infrastructure to link Baku and Nakhchivan and then Turkey will benefit
all regional countries. Regional economic cooperation will improve
the well-being of all people living here. I would like to emphasize
the importance of liberation of Azerbaijani territories again, Erdogan
said. He noted that peace and stability could not be achieved by word
only. Work must be done. The Turkish prime minister also appealed to
the US, France and Russia, countries co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group
brokering settlement of the Garabagh conflict. According to him, the
talks should result in a specific solution in order for confidence in
international law to be restored. Erdogan said Turkeys stance on the
conflict was clear. Turkey wants the Garabagh conflict to be resolved
on the basis of Azerbaijans territorial integrity and will continue
to adhere to this position in the future too, he said.

BROAD FRAMEWORK OF ARMENIA-IRAN BILATERAL ISSUES DISCUSSED

armradio.am
15.05.2009 12:18

President Serzh Sargsyan received the Ambassador of the Islamic
Republic of Iran to Armenia Seid Ali Saghaian, President’s Press
Office reported.

The parties discussed a broad framework of issues related to
Armenian-Iranian cooperation in different spheres. In particular,
reference was made to the process of accomplishment of the agreements
reached during President Sargsyan’s official visit to Iran in April.